As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a Dark type specialist.
To me, being a Dark type specialist was better than being the Champion of Unova.
I could remember the day I had become obsessed with this dream of mine as clear as day, even if it had been almost ten years ago.
It had been a boring day at the orphanage- like almost all days were in this place, the TV had been playing a battle from last year's Vertress Conference.
That was nothing weird, in fact, it was a rather common occurrence here at the orphanage. What caught my attention that day was how different these two pokemon were fighting.
They didn't fight graciously as Psychic and Fairy-type pokemon do, nor honorably like Fighting-type pokemon, or with overwhelming power like Dragon-type pokemon were known to do.
No, these two fought viciously, like they were wild. As if their lives depended on it and this wasn't an officially regulated tournament.
Most kids watching the fight were a bit frightened, but me? I was mesmerized. Call me pity-seeking, but before that day I had always felt like a mindless zombie. I had no dream, no purpose. Just mindlessly watching the time go by. After watching those two pokemon go at each other like that, I decided I was going to become the best Dark type specialist the world had ever known.
-(=0=)-
"Here you go brat!" the rather muscular man said as he handed me a small card with my name, date of registration, date of birth, trainer ID, and a picture of me on the top right. I was not particularly proud of how that had come out, as I looked like someone who hadn't slept for a week straight, but there was no point in complaining now.
The exam to become a pokemon trainer had been easy. Just a simple test you could do on a computer that was held every year on the 5th of June and poof! You were now a trainer. Just like that.
The man had called all people that had passed the exam to the Pokémon Center, and after receiving your card, you were allowed to go anywhere you wanted.
There was no starter to be received, only people with a close relationship with the famous Professor Juniper or someone with a lot of green would receive a starter pokemon upon becoming a trainer, be it one of the famous trio or another pokemon entirely.
Unlike most people, I did not care much about not receiving a starter, in fact, I didn't even want one in the first place.
If I was from Kalos or Alola, this would have been a completely different story, after all, Greninja and Incineroar were awesome Dark type pokemon.
It would have been a perfect fit.
Oh well, it is what it is. I thought as I put my Trainer Card in my wallet and ran towards the nearest Pokémart without even saying goodbye to the man that had given me my license.
And before I knew it, I had spent half of the money I had saved up on 3 pokeballs.
The other half was to be used on supplies. I hoped it would last long enough until my soon-to-be first pokemon was strong enough to start winning battles against other trainers.
I may not have been born in Kalos or Alola, but Unova's Castelia City was still not that bad for north of it laid Route 4. And you know what that meant?
Sandile.
-(=0=)-
I was lost.
I had no idea how I'd done it, but I managed to somehow. It was probably due to the massive sandstorm that decided to start the day I was just beginning my pokemon adventure. Oh well, I just had to keep walking until-
THUD*
I looked down expecting to have hit a rock but was greeted by a relatively small creature with light brown skin and black stripes.
A Sandile. A Pokemon!
"Hey little guy," I said softly, not wanting to scare the Sandile away, or worse, make it attack me.
The Sandile couldn't have looked more disinterested if it tried, the small kick I had given it on accident didn't even seem to have registered.
Of course it hadn't. This was a pokemon, a wild one at that. It had to hunt for food to survive, so an accidental kick from an average eighteen-year-old would have done no damage at all.
Unlike other species, Dark types were not very friendly with other Dark types, sometimes not even their own species. Sandile was a bit of an exception, as it was known to hunt in packs, but this one seemed to be all by himself.
You could tell this was a young Sandile, it had no scars on its body and didn't seem to be aggressive towards me, meaning I was probably the first human it had ever seen.
Sandile just seemed happy to stand before me, looking at me like I was some puzzle to solve.
"Hey Sandile, want to go on an adventure with me? I want to be the strongest Dark type specialist the world has ever seen. If you become my starter, I'll help you become the strongest Krookodile there has been in history!" this finally caught Sandile's attention, as I had managed to make his eyes lock on me.
"I'll take that as a yes," I said as I took one of my pokeballs from my backpack and threw it at the small creature.
Only for the Sandile to slightly move his head to the right, dodging the red and white sphere completely.
"...You're supposed to let it hit you so I can catch you, y'know?" I said.
Sandile seemed to be confused by this information, choosing to stay absolutely still.
"Alright," I said, picking up the ball from the sand, "let's give it another try."
This time, the Sandile made no effort to dodge, the pokeball hit it directly on its head.
A red light enveloped the Ground-Dark type, the sphere fell to the ground and shook only once before it clicked, signaling the pokemon inside it hadn't put up a lot of resistance.
"Nice, maybe I got lucky and found a docile Sandile. Or at least more than they usually are," with that thought, I released Sandile into the wild once again. Like before, my new pokemon was standing almost completely still, the only sign that it was even alive being its belly rising and falling from the relaxed breathing of the creature.
"Look, I somehow got lost, do you know how to get back to Castelia City?" I asked my new partner, who was still not moving.
What the hell was up with this Sandile? Was it stupid or something?
"Hey, I'm talking to you!" I exclaimed, snapping my fingers.
"..."
"Oh I'm sorry, where are my manners? I just caught you and didn't even introduce myself," I said as I extended my left hand forward. "My name is Alexis, pleasure meeting you Sandile," I said with a smile.
My pokemon stared at my extended hand for a good twenty seconds before finally deciding what to do with it.
*CHOMP*
I felt a sharp pain shoot through my entire arm, a sort of pain I had never experienced before. The sudden movement of Sandile right in front of me had made me instinctively withdraw my hand back as fast as I could, but Sandile had been a tiny bit faster.
As I raised my left to my face, I was greeted by the sight of half of my pinky finger missing, blood pouring extensively from the wound.
A blanket of warm pain enveloped me.
My ears started to ring.
My vision was narrowing.
I couldn't speak.
It was like my hand was burning in screaming hot pain.
I took a few steps back before my knees gave out, making me fall flat on my ass. I didn't feel like I was about to pass out but I could barely move. I was in so, so much pain.
As I look in front of me, I saw my new pokemon, my so-called "partner" munching on my finger. It was a revolting sight. Blood was pouring from the sides of its mouth and the crunch and chomp sounds almost made me throw up.
As I heard the sound of the beast across from me swallowing, I managed to push my body so that I could grab its pokeball with my right hand, quickly returning the creature to its pokeball before it decided it wanted another portion.
As I lay there, lost in the middle of the small desert that was Route 4, my clothes and shoes filled with sand that had been getting on my nerves for five hours now, feeling like I was about the bleed to death from getting my finger chopped off -something I knew was basically impossible, I felt the need to cry for the first time since I was nine years old.
-(=0=)-
Alexis slowly opened his eyes to an unfamiliar ceiling, the smell of disinfectant hitting his senses.
A hospital then?
Alexis shot himself up and looked around the white room.
"Ah, the sleeping beauty awakens," a man in a white coat said as he entered the room.
What was most likely a doctor picked up a round chair with wheels from under the bed Alexis was resting on, sat on it, and pulled out a clipboard from inside his coat.
"Now, I'm here to inform you that you suffered a heatstroke, the Ranger that brought you here honestly saved your life. Since you would have died from dehydration if left alone where she found you," the doctor stated, choosing to stay silent for a bit afterward to let Alexis process the information he had just given him.
"Sorry for my unprofessionalism, but are you prone to getting lost?"
Huh? What kind of question was that?
"I don't know, yesterday was the first time I've ever left Castelia City," Alexis explained.
"Thought as much," he said, glancing at the clipboard once again, "In that case, I would recommend you get yourself a Pokedex. The newer models come with a GPS, so this would be less likely to happen again," the doctor said.
Yeah, a Pokedex would have been so nice. Tragic that he lacked any funds to purchase one.
"Another subject would be the pinky finger of your left hand, judging by the type of wound you suffered, we correctly assume that it was done by your newly caught Sandile, right?"
"Yeah," Alexis admitted in a sad tone.
"...Well anyway, here he is," the man said, handing him the pokeball that carried his Sandile. "So he's a male?" Alexis thought, staring lifelessly at the sphere in his hands.
"We took the liberty of sending him to the Pokémon Center for a check-up and to register him under your name and trainer ID," he explained. "And here-" the doctor took a paper from his clipboard, handing it to Alexis, "are the statistics that were registered. Since you don't have a Pokedex, you won't be able to see them, so here you go."
Sandile: Ground/Dark Type
Nickname:
Gender: Male
Moves: Fire Fang, Bite, Rage, Sand Attack, Dig.
Ability: Moxie
"Fire Fang? That's rare," Alexis thought, his eyebrows shooting up.
"I know right? Fire Fang," the doctor exclaimed, reading Alexis's expression like an open book. "The center told us one of his ancestors must have been a Darmanitan for that to happen."
"How long have I been here?" Alexis asked.
"Your license said you became a trainer yesterday, the Range brought you here around 9:30 pm. It's now…" the man said as he raised his wrist up to his face to look at his watch. "10 am! You slept like a baby all night," he said, patting him on the shoulder with a smile.
The man rose from the chair, put it under the bed again, and spoke to Alexis one last time.
"You're free to go. And remember to drink plenty of water. Oh and the ranger that got you here is waiting for you in the waiting room, she seemed a bit in shock when she came here with you."
-(=0=)-
Alexis just stared at the Ranger that had saved his life. She looked young, around twenty-three and if he was being honest with himself; had a pretty smokin' body.
The fact that he had been saved by a pretty-looking girl around his age that was now sleeping right in front of him was obscured by the sight of a majestic pokemon that had its wings enveloped around her.
Not only was Alexis seeing a fully evolved pokemon with his own eyes for the first time, but it was also the gorgeous soprano singer given pokemon form.
Altaria, a Dragon/Flying Type pokemon.
The Altaria had its wings wrapped around what Alexis assumed was its trainer, who was sleeping just like her.
Alexis stood there for what probably seemed like long enough to make him look like a creep to doctors and nurses passing by before finally managing to snap out of his state of shock.
"Uhm… Excuse me," Alexis said with a soft tone, trying not to scare the young woman awake.
The brown-haired woman's eyes snapped open in a millisecond and before Alexis could blink she was standing right in front of him, striking a stationary drill position, quickly raising her right hand and giving him a military salute.
"Good morning Sir!" the woman screamed in his face.
"Hi," Alexis said, a bit shocked by her reaction.
"Oh, I'm sorry. It's just the habit. My name is Eva, pleasure meeting you," Eva said, giving out her hand for a handshake.
"I'm Alexis, thank you so mu-!" Arceus this woman's grip was strong! He felt like his hand was about to be crushed.
"Oh, don't mention it! It's my job as part of the Pokemon Rangers Of Unova to serve and protect the trainers and people of the country! You wouldn't believe how scared I got when Altaria spotted you! I finally got out of training and I already let someone die on my shift? I would have felt awful."
Eva finally released his poor right hand, Alexis just looked down at his now swollen appendage, looking up again only after a question came to his mind.
"Uh… Isn't it illegal to have your pokemon out in public spaces?" Alexis asked, curious.
"Eheh. You see, as a member of the N.R.A. National Rangers Association above the rank of private, I'm allowed to have one of my pokemon out whenever I want. Pretty cool huh?" Eva explained with a proud smile on her face.
"So you got promoted recently?" Alexis asked. If he was being honest, it was pretty cool.
"You bet. Got promoted last month!" Eva proclaimed proudly.
Alexis noticed how Altaria slowly moved its head, being awakened by her enthusiastic trainer's screams.
"Oh, that reminds me. Let me see your hand," the ranger demanded.
Alexis doubted for a second before finally raising his left hand, pinkie extended.
"Just as I thought. I'm sorry about that," it was obvious that the sight of his missing finger had brought back some bad memories.
"Not your fault. I'll make sure it doesn't happen again," Alexis said with a serious face.
"That's what I like to hear! Just before I go, I gotta gift for ya," Eva said as she grabbed something from her pocket.
"Here. Since you kinda got girly hands I think these should fit perfectly," Eva said, extending a pair of black fingerless gloves, identical to the ones she was wearing.
Alexis just looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
He didn't have girly hands! Well, maybe he did. Still, what a strange gift, and if anything, he should be the one giving her something…
"Thanks, but I can't take this after what you did for me."
Eva gave no response, simply raising her left hand.
The eighteen-year-old stared at the gloved hand for a bit, the quality of the glove seemed incredibly high. They were probably so expensive...
Maybe even custom-made, why give this to him?
It was only after a few seconds that Alexis finally realized why Eva was gifting him what were probably her spare gloves.
Her pinky finger was also missing from her left hand.
It was now obvious the gloves were custom made, as the pinky finger of the left hand was a closed one unlike the others, and was way shorter than the one of the opposite hand.
"Arceus you're slow. Must still be half asleep," Eva said with a smile. "Yeah, I lost mine too a bit after I became a trainer. I had them made so people would stop staring at it all the time. And c'mon, they're cool as shit! I can only think of three or four things cooler a pokemon trainer can wear and the Ranger uniform restricts me when it comes to those," Eva said.
I mean… They were cool, just how had she lo-
"You're not gonna believe me, but back when I started my journey, my father gifted me Swablu. Back then, she was a spiteful little bitch, and after I decided to leave her without dinner for not following my commands, she decided that my pinky finger from my non-dominant hand would be a good way to teach me a lesson and that I wouldn't really need it for anything related to training pokemon," Eva finished telling her story, giving Altaria a funny look that the pokemon shot back at her.
"Kinda similar to what you just went through, just without the whole heatstroke in the middle of the desert thing. That's why I want to give them to you. It's not like I don't have more pairs at home anyway."
Alexis grabbed the gloves with shaky hands.
This was the first time he had ever been given a gift.
"Sorry, this is a bit of an emotional moment for me," Alexis said, his eyes getting a bit watery.
"Awww, never had something gifted to you by a pretty girl?" Eva was clearly trying to tease him. Alexis didn't respond, trying not to ruin the nice moment as he put on the right glove.
It fitted perfectly.
Guess he did have girly hands after all.
Before he could put on the left one, Eva spoke once again.
"I put a little something inside that one, take it out before you put it on."
"A paper?" Alexis thought as he pulled out a small piece of paper with a series of numbers on it.
Oh God, could this be?..
"It's my number! You didn't have a Pokedex on you when we picked you up so I had to do it the old-fashioned way," she explained as Alexis started blushing.
"Once that little Sandile of yours becomes a total badass Krookodile, hit me up and we can have a battle. Finger-eating pokemon Vs finger-eating pokemon," she finished with a smile, Alexis's blush got even redder, if that was even possible.
"Look at the time! My next shift is in 30 minutes! Let's go Altaria!" Eva screamed at her pokemon as she started running down the hall of the hospital.
She almost crashed with a nurse coming out of a room, but swiftly managed to dodge her, screaming sorry without stopping.
Alexis just stood there, looking at Eva as she ran.
He only stopped after she made a turn to the left, disappearing from his sight in the process.
She hadn't even said goodbye.
After a while, Alexis made his way out of the hospital with a single thought in mind.
Let's hope that not all days of his career as a pokemon trainer would be as physically and emotionally taxing as the first two.